The Thorington Schoolhouse, in use 1859-1955 Washington Township, Michigan, USA
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“there is an old saying that the course of civilization is a race between catastrophe and education.
in a democracy such as ours, we must make sure that education wins the race.”
-john f. kennedy
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image credit: jeff bondono
Washington and Lafayette at Mt. Vernon
In honor of the anniversary of Bastille Day-
The Marquis de Lafayette, 19, arrived in the new world to join America’s revolutionary cause in 1777. Right off the bat, he made a powerful friend: George Washington instantly took a liking to the Frenchman and within a month, Lafayette had effectively become the general’s adopted son. Their affection was mutual; when the younger man had a son of his own in 1779, he named him Georges Washington de Lafayette.
The day after the storming of the Bastille, the Marquis de Lafayette became the commander of the Paris National Guard. In the aftermath of the Bastille siege, he was given the key to the building. As a thank-you—and to symbolize the new revolution—Lafayette sent it to Washington’s Mount Vernon home, where the relic still resides today.
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“Rien.”
(nothing)
-Diary entry of Louis XVI on Bastille Day
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Source credits: Mark Mancini, Mental Floss, Google Images
“democracy is never a final achievement. it is a call to an untiring effort.”
-john f. kennedy
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image credit: pngtree.com
memorial at u.s. capitol
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“great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds.”
-albert einstein
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photo credit: reuters, carlos barria
dried human tears (Smithsonianmag.com)
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watching the january 6th capitol hill hearing
the most compelling, wrenching, and heartfelt testimony
i have ever witnessed
raw pain
anger
hurt
disappointment
honesty
trauma
bravery
humanity
shock
duty
courage
heroism
scars
strength
loyalty
overwhelming emotions
unanswered questions
not one person immune from tears
i could not take my eyes off of them
and I am forever changed
questions must be answered and justice served
never to happen again.
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“that’s the thing about pain, it demands to be felt.” – john green
The designer of our current 50-star flag was Robert Heft. It was 1958 and there was some talk that Alaska and Hawaii were going to officially become states 49 and 50. One of his high school teachers capitalized on the current events of the day and had his students design a new flag incorporating the two new states. Inspired by Betsy Ross, (and cutting up his parents’ flag), Heft did just that, arranging the stars so it wasn’t very evident that he had added any. His teacher gave him a B-, saying that the design was unoriginal. When Heft balked at the grade, his teacher told him that if he could get the flag adopted by Congress, he would bump the grade up to an A. Heft jumped at the opportunity, sent the flag to his congressman, and after a long campaign and a refusal to give up, he ended up getting the flag approved. Heft got his ‘A’ as promised. Since then, Heft’s original homemade flag has flown over every single state capitol building, over 88 U.S. embassies, and over the White House for five administrations. He is now deceased, but has left behind a design with 51 stars ready to go if the need arises.
happy 4th of july!
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credits: mental floss, quora, wiki, readers digest
“without debate, without criticism
no administration and no country can succeed
and no republic can survive.”
― john f. kennedy
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photo credit: national archives
”we must be free not because we claim freedom,
but because we practice it.”
~william faulkner
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happy 4th of july
and here’s to practicing freedom every day
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image credit: funnyordie.com
caring for veterans shouldn’t be a partisan issue.
it should an american one.
– jennifer granholm
I didn't have my glasses on.... 